


Nothing in Particular

by Atanih88



Category: Saiyuki
Genre: M/M, Reincarnation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-10-09
Updated: 2011-10-09
Packaged: 2017-10-24 11:04:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/262762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Atanih88/pseuds/Atanih88
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sometimes in looking for nothing in particular, you find what you need to.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nothing in Particular

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for springkink for the prompt - Gojyo/Hakkai: reincarnation fic - ”I wasn’t looking for heaven or hell, just someone to listen to the stories I tell”. It's a day late and un-beta'd, so I double my apologies and hope its still enjoyable—this ended up turning into a monster *sigh*

It wasn't much past one in the morning when he reached the welcoming sign of the town. His eyes lingered on it for a few seconds. It was just a small placard, simple really and hammered to a long stick of wood which had then been driven into the dirt ground. The letters in it had been painted in a black ink—its letters nicely outlined in white.

He looked up from it, shifting the suitcase in his hand. His fingers had started cramping and his claves felt that if they were stretched for another step they'd tear loose. It had been a long day and he'd reached his destination. But as Hakkai stood there, at the edge of a small town that wasn't even a dot on the map, he couldn't bring himself to wish for anything other than a warm shower and a bed. He didn't have it in him to wish or hope for more than that from this place that was silent but lit up the night with from small windows of the houses that belonged to it.

With a sigh, he pushed the hair back from his face and stepped from the edge and into the town.

Maybe this time he'd find it.

~

It was one of those nights. The ones where Gojyo would wake up in a bed that smelt of overly sweet perfume, sweat and sex, with foreign sheets barely covering his ass in bed as he finally opened his eyes.

His hair was in his face so he pushed it away even as his mouth began to ache to be wrapped around a cigarette. His partner for the night was still there of course. They were never the first ones to leave the bed. And this one had been a real looker. Gojyo had thought so when he'd seen her inside the bar but despite sometimes finding that the haze of alcohol made them look a lot more attractive than they were the next morning, this one still looked as gorgeous as she had the night before.

Her black hair was spilled all over the sheets, tangling over her pale skin. Full breasts, softly rounded were cradled between the mattress and one of her arms and her lips were parted in sleep. She had some legs on her and Gojyo was amused to find warmth pooling low in his stomach as his eyes trekked their naked length and he found himself remembering what it had been like to have them wrapped around him. It hadn't been a bad feeling at all. And the scratches he could feel with a low sting over his shoulder blades told him she'd thought the same too.

He still hadn't moved as his eyes abandoned the sight of the gorgeous legs and skipped up to look at her closed eyes.

They were what had made him follow her to this shitty little apartment at the edge of town. In the pouring rain too.

He was always out on those kinds of nights. They made him feel restless and he always went home after a night of gambling feeling unsatisfied. It didn't matter that he won the majority of the times.

But last night he hadn't had that rare need to go home alone and just wait for the rain to pass. He'd been gathering his winnings and bidding the amazing examples of the female sex clinging to his arm goodnight. Then as he called out a hasty goodbye to the owner of the establishment, he'd caught the eye of the lady sitting next to her friend on the stools on a side table against the wall.

They'd been green.

A shade of green that had yanked at him—a smile, delicate patterns on golden skin—but it'd been gone in a second. Too quick for him to analyse. But the tug that green had pulled from him had kept him standing there long enough for her to smile. Long enough for him to smile back and approach her.

And so here he was.

In bed.

Her eyelashes fluttered and a small purr left her as she snuggled deeper into the warmth of the bed.

Gojyo shifted and turned to look at the curtain less window high up on the wall. Tinges of orange and pink had begun to paint their colour in brushes over the sky. Small little drops distorted his view as some remained still and others slipped lower on the glass.

Scratching his head, Gojyo turned to give the woman one last look.

He hadn't asked for her name.

Maybe because although her eyes had been that shade—there had still been something missing to complete them.

He snorted a quiet laugh at his own stupidity and then pushed up, swinging his legs over the bed and planting his feet on the wood boards.

Another day.

It made something in his chest hurt to know exactly how it would pan out.

The same as it always did.

~

It was a cold morning which they didn't have often in this late time of summer. For some reason the heat always seemed to intensify as they got closer to autumn until one day it'd hit and bam. They'd be freezing their nuts off.

It wasn't quite like that yet but Gojyo had an expression of grim amusement and his hands were tucked deep into the pockets of his jeans as he headed towards his place. The thin t-shirt and the worn leather jacket weren't helping him much and the sun was a source of icy light that bathed the back of his legs and neck.

He shouldn't have pulled his hair up.

Normally Gojyo would've just taken a shower and fallen asleep as soon as he got home. There was nothing much for him to do during the day, he tended to go out to the bars in the evening and that was pretty much it.

But as he climbed up the few number of stairs to his crappy excuse for an apartment, he paused when he saw the note pinned to his door which had clearly been written by a hurried hand. A familiar hand too.

Taking his cigarette from his mouth he paused in front of the door and reached with his left to tear the note down, bringing it closer for him to read as he took another drag from the cigarette.  
When he was finished reading he crumbled it in his hand with a grunt and shook his head as he got his keys out of his pocket and opened up the door.

"So the little squirt's been skipping work again." He sighed as he stepped inside and closed the door behind him, giving a little shiver as the cold dissipated and was replaced by a more decent temperature. His pleasure though was instantly replaced by a grimace as he wrinkled his nose in disgust at the awful smell that that stained the small place.

What the hell? Had he left something in the fridge too long again?

Shaking his head he pulled off his jacket and tossed it in the general direction of the sofa.  
There'd be no extra sleep today if he was going to go give the old man a helping hand at the market.

Still. He wasn't expecting much.

~

It was around ten in the morning and the temperature was completely different to what it had been in the morning. As Gojyo stepped back to fetch another crate of apples from the shades to replace the empty one, he felt rivulets of sweat running down his back. The small wais apron he wore was light so it didn't add any extra warmth on top of his jeans and the bandanna he wore kept his hair from falling onto his face unnecessarily.

The sun was hitting his back fully and he wiped at his forehead with the back of his forearm before reaching down to pick up the apple crate.

Behind him the road that the small market stalls had been spread along were busy with people doing their morning shopping. The buzz of conversation filled the air around him, the sounds of women gossiping and customers bartering with their sellers for cheaper prices.

Hoisting the crate up and onto the stand Gojyo frowned and wiped at his cheek as he tried to look for the old man that had left him on the stand by himself, claiming it was his turn for a break.

"Break my ass." Gojyo muttered, turning back to the apples and one by one, putting the pale green and yellow freckled apples into a more attractive display. It didn't help that he lacked sleep, hadn't eaten breakfast and was craving a cigarette. He knew from experience though that if he were caught smoking around the fruit it'd be a fist to his head. "Stupid old man."

While his mutter went on, he was only half aware of the crunching steps that announced someone approaching the stand.

"My, these look very good."

"Heh," Gojyo smirked and continued putting them out, "If the old man heard you say that he'd probably end up giving you some for free."

The small quiet laugh that followed had Gojyo looking up from his task to find a slim tall man standing on the other side of the stand. His head was down as his long fingers passed over the set of red apples next to the ones that Gojyo was setting out.

He wasn't someone that Gojyo had seen before and since it was a small town that just meant this was a new face. Not that Gojyo could see the new face since the man still hadn't looked up. The man's hair was dark brown and it fell over the square glasses he wore. The shirt he wore was almost buttoned to the very top—just one or two buttons keeping him from being completely covered up in the heat. The sleeves had been rolled up to just beneath his elbows but he looked comfortable.

Gojyo looked away to finish up the apples. "You new to these parts man?"

Again, that laugh. "Yes, I suppose I am."

Gojyo frowned. There was something—that felt odd about this. "Where you coming from?"

"No where in particular."

The tone was polite but the coldness that suddenly wrapped itself around the man's words had Gojyo flicking a look up once more. All he got was a glimpse of lips curved in an impersonal smile and eyes crinkled.

It tickled something. Like the green eyes from the night before had.

"He—"

"Oi! Gojyo! Come give me a hand I have another load of apples, we need to get these under the shade!"

At the familiar gruff voice, Gojyo looked over his shoulder. "Yeah yeah, gimme a s—"

"Well, I can see you're still busy setting up. I'll buy some other time. Excuse me and have a good day."

Gojyo spun around, for some reason his mouth already open to tell the guy to wait, but by the time he did, all he saw was the slim back being swallowed into the crowds that walked around him.

He stood for a second and after a few seconds realised that his heart had picked up and was thumping against his chest.

Resting a hand on his hip, his shoulders slouched as he rubbed at the back of his neck with the other, wondering what the hell had happened.

"Oi—Gojyo—if you don't get moving, helper or no helper I'm not paying you, y'hear?"

~

That man, with his polite words and humourless smile stayed with Gojyo until every apple on the stand had been sold and even after the old man had patted his back a little too hard and slapped just a few bills that could barely pay for a whole meal onto his hand.

The man didn't appear at the market again though.

Gojyo strode into the bar, lighter to the end of the cigarette dangling from his mouth, flame sparking briefly to touch the cigarette and give it a brief glow that disappeared into a thin trail of silvery smoke.

His eyes flicked over to the cards table as noise burst into the room, with claps and giggles and smug male laughter. He couldn't even see the table or the players with the number of people surrounding it. When a couple of them noticed him and motioned him over he nodded his head and called that he'd join in later then continued his way to the bar.

Getting his stool in the corner he nodded at Misa behind the bar, giving her an easy smile. "Lively tonight?"

Misa laughed. "Aren't we always? How is your night going Gojyo-san?" She set her cloth down and set leaned her arms on the bar, effectively giving him a great view down the V of her top. She smiled and winked at him.

His smile widened and he leaned forward himself, turning his nose into the side of her neck and catching the scent of cigarette's and beer and somewhere underneath that a sharpened sweetness that was from the perfume she had under it all.

"So far so good but I'm pretty sure it'll get better..." he murmured as he eased back and saw the way her eyes slid over his face appreciatively.

"I think so too," she laughed and gave him a wink, "but for now—the same?"

"Yeah babe, that'd be good."

With a sashay of her hips and another suggestive smile she turned around and went to get him his order.

Gojyo took a drag from his cigarette and lowered his head to work his thumb up and down the centre of his forehead.

As he wondered whether if that was really the thing to do when he'd been feeling unsettled ever since seeing the man in the market, Gojyo was distracted by Misa's voice as she began talking to another customer on the other side of the bar.

"Wow, you're a looker aren't you stranger-san."

The polite laugh had Gojyo's hand pausing just before his cigarette made it back to her mouth.  
"Thank you very much Miss, you're quite a lovely lady yourself."

Misa burst into delighted laughter. "Well now, that's a nice smooth mouth you have on you stranger-san. Is there anything I can get you?"

"Er... well, I'm not much of a drinker. Some light sake perhaps?"

"No problem, coming right up."

Gojyo leaned to the side, trying to look around Misa, the stool tipping dangerously as he did so.

His eyes landed on him and he couldn't quite explain to himself why he was surprised to see the man. He'd just gotten a few quick looks at him but he'd remembered his face well. It was the guy from the market. The oddest thing was that the man had a damn book down on the counter.

Gojyo blinked. He didn't think he'd ever seen someone reading at a bar.

Huh.

Suddenly his view was blocked by Misa's very pretty chest and he looked up at her, straightening his chair and ignoring the jar as all of the stool's legs were once more flat on the floor.

Misa set his beer down in front of him. "See something you like Gojyo-san?" She looked over her shoulder before she replied. "I didn't know your tastes went that far but hmm, I guess the man's a looker."

"Hah?" Gojyo frowned up at her. Yeah he'd gotten the impression the guy was good looking but he hadn't looked at him long enough to figure it out. His face was facing down just as it had been earlier. And well, when Gojyo had looked up to see the man's cool smile it had been fleeting before the old man had arrived to distract him. "No, he's a new face and I saw him at the market this morning." He mumbled, not sure why he did.

"Hmm," she looked over her shoulder again, shrugged it and turned back, "he's polite enough. The ladies will like him," she said with a laugh, "so maybe you're just grumpy because you'll be getting competition."

Gojyo snorted and reached for his beer. "Sure." He stood from the stool and put out his cigarette. "Be right back."

Misa quirked her brow as he began making his way around the bar, heading for the place where the other guy sat. He had to shrug off quite a few hands on his way and dodge invitations so it took him longer than he should to reach the vacant stool next to the man and slide onto it, setting his beer down.

"Is this a habit?" Not exactly Gojyo's best opening line but that odd feeling that had been following him around all day didn't really let him come up with anything better.

The guy looked up from his book, surprised at having someone join him. "Excuse me?"

Gojyo stared.

The guy was definitely good looking. Yeah. Better looking than a lot of women he'd been with which was kind of... disturbing. But that wasn't what had left Gojyo speechless at that moment.

It was the green eyes staring at him from behind those spectacles.

Then they crinkled at the corners as the guy gave him a smile that was a much nicer version than the one Gojyo had seen that morning. "Ah, you're the gentleman from the market." He looked from the stunned look on Gojyo's face to the stool behind him. "There's a stool behind you if you'd like to sit down." He suggested voice perfectly serious but the sense that he was being mocked came to Gojyo loud and clear.

"Er—yeah thanks." He set down his beer and sat down.

The man waited until Gojyo was seated and then got a previously folded napkin, placed it neatly between the pages of the book and then closed it. Those graceful fingers reached for his sake, picked up the bottle, poured. "You were asking about a habit?"

Gojyo shook his head and frowned before he gestured towards the book. "Reading at bars." He said.

The man chuckled and looked down at the red cover of the book, patting it with a fond hand. "Not really no. But I felt like reading and I felt like a drink." He looked up at Gojyo again, this time his expression was sheepish. "And for some reason I was in the mood for some company."

"Heh, guess I know the feeling—not the reading," he snickered and took a swig from his bottle, "but the company part."

"Hmm." The man sipped from the small ochoko. "Yes on occasion..." the man turned to face him again, the intelligent eyes tugging at something in Gojyo—vines over a perfect cheek bone—

Gojyo kept his eyes on the man. Hell, he didn't care if the person was man or woman, he'd never been shy about looking at someone and he wasn't about to start now. "So do you have relatives here or passing by...?"

"Nope, no relatives here I'm afraid. As for the passing by," his eyes fell to the counter between them, the tilt of his lips not really one of humour, "I guess we'll see."

"I get you man," Gojyo reached into his jacket's pocket and tugged out his High-Lites, "when I came to this place, wasn't really sure what I was doing here. But it's a nice place. People are nice... I guess." He threw the other man a lecherous look. "And the babes are definitely up my alley if you know what I mean."

The other man's expression became one of amusement once more and he reached up to adjust his glasses. "Yes, I think I do Mr...?"

"Huh?" Gojyo blinked. "Yeah, sorry – Gojyo—" he extended his hand, switching the cigarette he'd taken out to his other hand."

The man looked down at the offered hand and after a peculiar pause reached for it, long fingers closing over Gojyo's hand and shaking. "Hakkai. Cho Hakkai."

"So what are you looking for Cho Hakkai?"

"I'd say nothing in particular."

"This is a good place to find nothing in particular I guess..."

Hakkai looked away, hand going back to his sake. "That would be nice."

"Heh, so where are you—"

A heavy handed landed on Gojyo's shoulder, cutting off his words and making him turn to see who it was to find one of the women who'd been surrounding the cards table standing there already with a pout on her face. "What's keeping you? Aren't you going to play today?" She asked, coming closer, body pressing to his side.

"I'll be over in a sec just give me a—"

The scraping of a stool brought his attention back to the man—Hakkai—and Gojyo blinked in surprise to find him placing some money on the counter and gathering his book. "Hey man, you leaving already?"

Hakkai turned to him and gave him and the woman another of those polite smiles that for some reason looked out of place on his face. "I'm afraid so, you look like you have company so maybe we can talk again another time."

~

 _"Hey—now that it's become like this you won't have any hot daughters for me to hit on..."_

That voice—was his own.

 _"Hahaha, I suppose not, will that be a problem?"_

That one—wasn't unfamiliar either. Gojyo's eyebrows came down low, the flickering behind his eyelids becoming faster as he sank deeper into it. Into this dream that he had the feeling he'd had before.

 _He stared up at the ceiling and watched as the smoke that he blew upwards floated up with its twisting pattern before it split and disappeared completely. There was a smile on his lips. His limbs weighed down with that satisfying post-sex laziness._

 _"Guess not."_

 _"Gojyo—how many times have I told you to avoid smoking in the bedroom?"_

 _Gojyo heard him sight, an exasperated sigh which just amused Gojyo. "Yeah—but look," he pointed to the ashtray resting on his chest, "see? Got the ashtray this time."_

 _That suffering sigh again. He turned his head to see but he'd buried his head in his pillow in exasperation. But it still left Gojyo with plenty to appreciate._

 _He was lying down on his side next to Gojyo, slim body exposed save for the sheet that he'd managed to get to cover him just a little too low on his hips._

 _Gojyo lifted the arm that had been folded beneath his head and reached his fingertips to brush over the scar that splashed over that tight stomach. Against his fingertips he felt the small quiver. He smirked._

 _"That's not the point Gojyo. And also, please remember that we just finished a round. A little rest and food wouldn't go amiss before we try to break a record, wouldn't you say?"_

 _Gojyo chuckled, cigarette still stuck between his lips. "Heh—food is overrated if you ask me." He ran his thumb over the rise of skin, moving lower and lower until he was brushing his fingers through tiny hairs. "Hey—you know, you're kind of telling me you want to skip food too... see? Right here."_

 _"...You're a lost cause."_

~

It was a weird dream that stayed with him in strips only after he rolled out of bed. A bed which he'd spent the night in alone.

Gojyo paused in the middle of the busy market. It was too early for him again, but this time it was because after waking up from the dream, he hadn't been able to go to sleep.

The dream had been familiar.

He kicked at a pebble in his way, ignoring the sun that was once again beating down on the people in the market without remorse. He weaved his way around playing children and friends and sellers stopping in the middle to talk. His eyes didn't leave the floor though and the frown on his face didn't go anywhere either.

Not what had happened in the dream—or what he could remember of it. But the feeling of the dream. The person in the dream. He hadn't seen the man's face. And it had stunned him enough that he'd clearly been dreaming about doing—or relaxing after having done—a guy.

But it was almost too vivid.

Gojyo didn't realise he'd lifted his hand to stare at it until he realised that he was rubbing his fingers over his thumb as if he could still feel the sensation of that scarred skin against them. It just made him feel even more unsettled and he shoved his hand back into his pocket and sped up his step. Maybe a beer would help him loosen up and get rid of the feeling that had been dogging him lately.

It was the charmed laughter of a cluster of ladies standing together at the end of the street that made Gojyo slow his step, and giving them a curious look as he saw that they were all staring in the same direction.

Stopping a few steps behind him, it was easy enough for him to look over their heads to see what they were so fascinated by.

It was the new face that had appeared along with his feeling of unsettlement. Hakkai sat on a small abandoned crate surrounded by at least ten children, a few sitting in front of him and listening avidly to what he was saying, a few clinging to his sides and there was one standing on the crate he sat, tiny arms barely managing to reach around his neck as the girl leaned close to listen to what he was saying.

They all looked pretty awed by whatever tale it was that he was telling them.

"Heh," Gojyo rocked back on his heels, eyes leaving the children to take in the expression on Hakkai's face.

His eyes closed for a second as his lips smiled and spoke words that made the little children scoot closer to him. He looked like he was completely in his element, taking the children's company with ease and obviously doing more than an okay job at keeping them entertained.

A story teller.

He remembered the calm tone of that quiet voice as it had spoken to him the night before at the bar. Yeah. Story teller would suit this guy very well.

Intrigued and warmed by the scene Gojyo felt compelled to go over and join them, even if it were just for him to sit down and listen too and he looked away, scratching at his temple as he debated whether to continue on his way home or go over to where Hakkai was wooing all the future ladies of the town.

He smirked as amusement increased that little bit more. "Stealing all the future babes."

Then as if Gojyo's gaze had become a palpable weight, from the centre of the little group, Hakkai looked up; looking at him through those glasses that Gojyo was sure kept his face from being that bit more devastating.

Or maybe not.

Gojyo grinned in greeting and didn't realise he was rubbing his fingers over his nose in a subconscious gesture at having been found staring that way.

Nah. The guy didn't need to lose the glasses. He looked like the type that might make a person get a glasses fetish or something from the way they suited his pretty face.

Hakkai paused in his story telling—if it really was story telling that he was doing—to smile back at him and incline his head to the side, a small invitation that had the little heads of the children turning to look at who it was that their favourite person of the hour was talking to.

As all of them eyed him with an air of expectation, even the women that had been watching turned to look at him, curious gazes landing on him to see if he'd join the small group as well.

Feeling resigned, he gave a small shrug and saw Hakkai chuckle before he focused once more on the children and continued to speak. That tiny action made Gojyo swallow. Because he actually found it kind of—hot.

"Get a grip man, you like soft curves with a pair of breasts—and that's not about to change." He muttered under his breath, more than a little disturbed by his reaction.

But then as he got closer, Hakkai's voice drifted towards him, becoming louder and more compelling the closer he got.

He stopped when he was standing behind the children, giving a couple of them a smile when they glanced up at him before going back to listening.

It was a story.

"...and so the three Gods protected the Sage from the others, taking him into a place they knew very well so that they could escape."

Gojyo tilted his head, eyes narrowing as he too slipped under the soothing spell of Hakkai's voice.

Hakkai grinned. "Unfortunately they had to take one of their superior's hostage."

A small hand popped up. "Was he a bad man?"

"No. This man was actually very honourable compared to the other people who lived up in Heaven. They weren't going to hurt him, they just needed someone to keep the bad people from barging in to the place they went to, so that they wouldn't be attacked and hurt."

"Did they get away?"

Hakkai's smile changed then, becoming a little sad. "In the end... I guess they did."

"Were they happy? Did the monkey sage boy get to stay with the pretty man? And did they all sit under the sakura trees again?"

Other innocent voices popped up, repeating the questions, demanding their happy ending.

Hakkai chuckled. And he looked up at Gojyo.

It was—a clear look. The green was so clear from behind the glasses in that moment. Maybe because of the shadow that fell across Hakkai's face then.

"Yes." Hakkai's gaze fell away from Gojyo's face to take in the children again. "But it was after a long time. They managed to meet again and spent a long time together, they went on many adventures too."

"Oooh! Can you tells us? What adventures did they have? Were they fighting monsters?"

"Where they looking for treasure?"

"Did they have to rescue princesses!!!"

That last one was yelled loud enough to make Gojyo wince. He laughed, sending an amused look at Hakkai who had also definitely felt the impact of that amazing lung power. Gojyo rubbed at his ear, trying to get it to stop ringing.

"Well, why don't we save those for another time?" Hakkai suggested. "Your parents have to get going and we've already been here for quite a while," he sent an apologetic look over at the ladies who had drawn closer to the group as well and stood, giving them a small bow, "I apologise for keeping you."

"Oh no, no it's no problem," one of them laughed, "It gave us a few moments of peace of mind and it looks like they enjoyed it very much. You're a very good story teller Hakkai-san."

"Thank you ma'am." Hakkai said with another small bow. Then he turned back to the kids. "Well, I'll think of some of their adventures to tell you about at another time. Does that sound good?"

It took a moment after that promise to settle the kids down and get them to leave with their parents but after about five minutes Gojyo found himself watching the women leave with the children next to Hakkai.

"Hey man," he said, nudging at Hakkai's arm with his elbow as he started searching for a cigarette, "I think you got yourself a fan club."

"Haha, is that so?" Hakkai looked away from the children and back at Gojyo. "We seem to keep bumping into each other Gojyo-san."

Gojyo snorted and sent him a side-glance that told the other exactly how he felt about the honorific. "Just Gojyo thanks."

"All right," a quiet laugh again, "Gojyo."

"Heh, well, as bumping into each other, it's not that big a town."

"No I guess isn't, but," Hakkai turned to face Gojyo, the corners of his mouth tilted up in a pleasant curve that had Gojyo resisting the urge to step back, "since our conversation ended prematurely last night would you like to join me for lunch?"

The ease with which he was able to talk to this guy bothered Gojyo almost as much as the dream, and the way his own eyes seemed to like looking at this person that he had only met twice before and even those slight chance meetings hadn't gone on for very long.

"Depends, you buying?"

Hakkai's smile widened. "Well I'd say since I invited you, it'd be very manners not to pick up the tab."

Gojyo put the cigarette to his lips and reached into his jeans to get out his lighter. "In that case, what should we have?"

~

After that, Gojyo found that when he wasn't sleeping or making a living at the local bar, he was usually spending his time with Hakkai.

It was an interesting combination. The two of them were what seemed to be polar opposites but there was never anything that they lacked in conversation. And when they didn't have anything to say, then they didn't. They'd just have a drink and enjoy the night—as they had on a night of drinking outside on the steps of Gojyo's house—it was the first time that Gojyo had experienced what was called companionable silence.

Sometimes, if the children came over—yeah his place had become a beacon for the little monsters since Hakkai tended to come over quite a bit (sometimes it seemed it was to give an extremely polite but extremely scary lecture on how to keep a clean house), Hakkai would tell some more stories. They always seemed to centre on the same group of people. Four guys that had been kicked out of Heaven and then somehow stumbled over each other again in another life.

The stories were like everything else about Hakkai. They were familiar in a way that Gojyo couldn't make sense of. He heard Hakkai telling them, sometimes picking on details that were so specific for a mere telling of a story. Gojyo would never know what would happen next when the stories were told but when he found out, there was always something inside him that would nod and approve, accepting and confirming that that had really been what had happened.

Other times, like the way they sat again outside his porch, just the two of them, beers opened in front of them—Hakkai would continue other stories just for them. It turned out that Hakkai was really fond of history and mythology, so he everywhere he went he'd try to collect stories of folklore, legends, to add to his growing pile.

Hakkai sat a step lower from Gojyo, elbows balanced on the step that Gojyo rested his feet on. His beer was on the same step on which he sat and his long legs were crossed.

Gojyo thought but couldn't be sure, that Hakkai was staring at the moon.

"Gotta be tough—being born just to do people's dirty work for them." Gojyo commented, crushing his cigarette on the ash-tray, something he'd barely used before but which he'd learned was a necessary thing from Hakkai's 'advice' on cleaning.

"Well... I suppose he had no one else to turn to, someone else to show him that it was supposed to be different."

Gojyo lay back, cradling his head in his arms and making himself as comfortable as the steps he was stretched on would allow. "Isn't that what the monkey guy did?"

"Yes. I suppose that's what set everything in motion... Son Goku..." Hakkai's voice was low, as if he were musing to himself now. "How such a thing as simply extending a hand in friendship led to everything that followed seems almost... unbelievable."

Gojyo stared at the sky, eyes tracing over the starless sky and catching outlines of clouds shaded in a marooned red.

"Oi Hakkai..."

"Hmm?"

"You know, I used to have these dreams—about things I'd never done before but somehow I was always in these dreams you know?" Hakkai didn't comment this time and Gojyo just carried on, eyes closing as a breeze swept over him, making his shirt ripple and blowing his hair back from his face. "Since you started telling me your stories they've come back more often and they seem more...ah, I don't know, real, yeah?"

"And what do you dream of?"

Gojyo opened his eyes. "I don't know. When I wake up I only remember bits and pieces. But—I don't mind them you know?"

"So they're good dreams?"

"Heh—yeah, I guess they are."

They stayed silent for a while, just the sound of the night surrounding them. They coaxed Gojyo's breathing into slowing, his eyes giving in to the weight that slowly begun to pull his eyelids lower and lower until they closed and his breathing evened out.

"Gojyo?"

"Yeah?" He replied, his mouth was slow in the forming the reply but then he only heard the question right as he fell into the first stages of sleep.

"The dreams I have—they're good too."

~

 _"Stupid monkey—good thing we're rooming together—" Gojyo muttered, crowding him into the wall as they stepped under the shower, his hands taking full advantage of all that bared skin and running over the tight stomach, over slim hips—the pads of his fingers flitted over the scar tissue and he had to resist the urge to groan as his erection was cradled right against the firm ass._

 _"He's agitated. I don't think the two of them have gone this long without talking, give them time Gojyo."_

 _"Yeah, easy for you to say," he grumbled, running his mouth up the slender neck to find his way to the cuffs on his ear, pausing to nibble there as he rocked his hips against him and enjoyed the hot water as it pulsed over his skin, "you're not the one being smacked with a paper fan all the time or having food stolen off your plate."_

 _"Now now Gojyo, you know Goku's younger than you—"_

 _Gojyo jerked back, irritated although he wasn't planning on stopping half way any time soon. "He's fucking twenty one!" Unfortunately his partner was clearly able to step away without feeling too bad about the loss off friction. And Gojyo saw as he turned around and faced him with his green gaze and a stern expression that he was more than capable of leaving Gojyo with his hard little friend to beat it off._

Wait—this is, this is familiar—he...

 _"Really Gojyo, who is the more mature one here? This is like the time you and Goku were play fighting and broke Sanzo's office—"_

 _"Oi—oi Hakkai, that's not fair—"_

Gojyo's eyes flew wide open as he snapped right out of sleep. He stared unseeingly at the ceiling, breathing hard as the shock and the realisation of what he'd just seen made his heart beat harder against his chest.

"What the hell..."

~

Gojyo hadn't been to the inn that many times. For some reason they always ended up at his place. But it was nice enough, it was all clean and quiet as he walked down the corridor towards the last door, the room that Hakkai had been staying at for the last three weeks—he'd managed to get a free stay for helping out in the kitchen at breakfast, it seemed the guests really liked his cooking.

The dream this time had stayed in Gojyo's head, loud and clear. Vivid. The water, the skin—hell, even the warmth of the steam against his face. Gojyo could remember it all clearly. And the names.

Goku, Sanzo, Hakkai. Gojyo.

He stopped in front of Hakkai's door and knocked, knuckles hitting the wood with impatient little raps as his hand patted around for his cigarettes. It took him a full minute to remember that he'd finished all his cigarettes—he'd been smoking like a friggin chimney since he'd woken up from the dream—and he'd forgotten to buy some, and to realise that Hakkai wasn't answering the door.

"Fucking—what the hell's the guy doing..." he muttered under his breath and then turned the handle without a second thought. Not really expecting it to open and stumbling inside when it gave too quickly under his weight.

Gojyo braced himself against the door to keep from falling flat on his face and straightened, looking around as he did so.

The room was as neat as he'd expected a place Hakkai stayed at to be.

The bed was a single, pressed against the wall with its sheets pulled up and pillow which had been fluffed into perfect roundness. Hakkai's suitcase was against the foot of the bed, on its back, its lid not quite closed.

There was a round table that had tea that had been made not too long ago. There were ribbons of steam rising into the air from the pot. There was a huge pile of books next to it and one of them had been left open. The same napkin that Hakkai had used for a bookmark the night they had met placed on one page in case the book closed. The blinds of the window had been tugged down and only a little amount of light made it through to touch on the wooden floor of the room.

Gojyo shut the door behind him and walked further into the room.

"Oi—Hakkai—"

A door to his left opened, creaking loudly and spilling more light into the room as well as a cloud of steam.

Then Hakkai's head popped through the gap, blinking rapidly as he looked round the room until his eyes landed on Gojyo standing there in the middle.

"Oh, Gojyo—I'm sorry, I thought I heard someone knock but I wasn't sure. Hold on a second—" he disappeared back inside, leaving the door ajar and Gojyo barely had time to think of something to do with himself when the door opened again and Hakkai stepped through.

Now, Gojyo had no doubt in his mind that if he ever got to see Hakkai half naked he would've stared. He'd grown used to the idea that he found this guy attractive but as Hakkai tried to tighten the belt so the sides of the lapel wouldn't sag, Gojyo got an eyeful as it was.

And what he saw froze him on the spot.

The scar.

It was the scar he'd seen in his dreams—the one that his dream-self seemed to have an obsession with touching. It right there. Right where he'd seen it and touched it. On Hakkai.

"Gojyo...?"

He couldn't look away, his eyes were glued to it as he kept on replaying the dream in his head and comparing.

Hakkai came closer, bare feet leaving damp prints behind on the wood as he walked towards him.

"Oi, Hakkai." Gojyo looked up from his stomach to lock narrowed eyes on Hakkai's face. "What's going on?"

"I'm sorry?"

Gojyo strode over, his hand reaching out without his say so. His hand slid inside the robe—he felt Hakkai stiffen and take a step back—he slid it down, palm pressing against the skin there. He felt the rise of the scar, the unusual softness of the skin there that wasn't on any other part of Hakkai's body as it brushed against his hand.

He kept his hand pressed there. The heat of the skin seeping into his palm as he stared down between their bodies, Hakkai having gone still and quiet.

It was familiar. It felt like Gojyo had done this a hundred times before. His palm flattened over this scar, his hand on this body. His eyes had gone wide and his throat dry and the beginnings of arousal pooling low in his belly as his eyes lifted and followed the vulnerable line of smooth skin bared by the robe.

He swallowed. His hand contracted and his fingers pressed a little harder into Hakkai but Gojyo looked up, gaze lingering but not stopping at Hakkai's mouth as he met his calm gaze.

"Are you doing something? Are you doing some weird shit to mess with my head?"

Hakkai's inclined his head, damp strands following the motion to fall over his eyes. "I'm afraid I haven't done anything Gojyo." His eyes fell to the hand still on his body and lifted back up. "I don't think I'm the one doing anything at all."

"I saw you—I've been seeing you," his voice choked off as confusion swamped in, he laughed, "what the hell man—the guys from your stories were in my dreams too..."

"I see." A careful hand closed around the wrist of the hand that Gojyo was touching him with.

"Oi Hakkai—did you know me? Before meeting me—did you know me?"

Hakkai didn't blink or look away, his voice remained calm. But his face was completely serious. "That depends on what you're asking Gojyo."

"The dreams—"

 _'The dreams I have—they're good too.'_

"Gojyo..."

Gojyo stepped back. His hair fell to curtain his face. "Hey—I'm gonna..." he looked away from him—the image of the man in front of him merging with the image of the guy in the dreams. "Heh—man...I need a beer." And shaking his head, he turned away, and left.

~

The sun was throwing its last rays onto the sky, throwing shades of purple and pink onto the dark blue closing over it.

Gojyo was sitting on the steps leading up to his place and he was staring up, beer dangling between the thumb and forefinger of his right hand, cigarette from his lips. His legs were stretched out before him and he'd long ago left his shirt inside and sat outside in nothing but his jeans.

The air was humid and it felt like it was clinging to his skin, adding a sheen to it that wouldn't have been there otherwise. The glass of the beer bottle was cool, rubbing moisture onto his palm as it swung lightly between his fingers.

He'd been there a while. The bottles lined up on the last of the steps was a testament to just how long he'd been there.

It wasn't that he was upset.

He was a pretty flexible guy. Open minded. He could go with the flow—and had—for the most part.

It was just that this had 'complicated issues' written all over it.

Did he want to get in deeper than he was already?

He didn't move when he heard the approaching steps. Not when he heard them climbing up his stairs. Not when a shadow fell across his face.

Hakkai was sitting beside him and Gojyo still didn't move.

Neither of them said anything for a while.

Gojyo looked down and took in Hakkai's back. He was leaning forward, arms resting on his knees and looking up as well.

"Want a beer?" He offered.

"Please." Hakkai looked over his shoulder; giving him that same polite smile that Gojyo had come to learn was what he used when he was on automatic.

It only took Gojyo a few seconds to go get two more bottles from inside and then rejoin Hakkai again. He tapped Hakkai's shoulder with it and waited until Hakkai looked up him and took it before settling down again, this time on the same step as Hakkai.

It was surprising, the effort it took to not press his thigh harder against the warmth of Hakkai's when he became aware that he couldn't sit next to him without them touching. But he managed it. He didn't try to shift away though.

They were both staring at the sun that was almost finished setting once more. Something that had also been burned into Gojyo's mind. It felt like he'd seen it hundreds of times.

And for some reason he felt like the majority of those times he'd never watched them alone.

"I did know of something that wasn't quite right." Hakkai said. "The dreams you mentioned weren't exclusive to you." He elaborated, smiling to himself as he looked down at the bottle he held in his two hands.

"The stories...?"

"The stories are related as well. As I started going around and learning about legends and myths, along the way those stories began to trigger the dreams and then I began to wonder if there was something else to them."

"So what—you started searching for one of the people from the stories?"

There was a small chuckle. "No. Like I said... I wasn't in search of anything in particular. I was just hoping to find out more." Hakkai shrugged. "Although I did consider the possibility that if I existed and hypothetically I had had past lives, I might not be the only one of that particular group to exist once more."

Gojyo let out a strangled laugh and rubbed his hands over his eyes. "Sounds complicated as hell man..."

"Yes. I suppose it is."

Gojyo turned his face, letting his head rest on his hands still but just wanting to look at Hakkai. His expression was serious and his hair was pushed behind one ear, not hindering the view to his face as he continued to watch Hakkai.

"So... you and me. We were...er... you know..." his gaze remained on him and Gojyo waited for Hakkai to look at him in return even though he couldn't actually make himself finish.

When Hakkai did turn his eyes were serious. They weren't green in the fading light anymore but instead a deeper shade that didn't exist. He tilted his head to the side though, as if seeing Gojyo's reaction to his answer was something that he was curious about.

"As far as I'm aware of given... dreams and the closeness of the four people, I'd guess that we were, yes."

Gojyo blinked. "Huh." He turned away, facing forward again as he took that in.

"Does it bother you?"

Bracing his elbows on his knees Gojyo rubbed at his eyebrow with his thumb, grimacing a little as he thought of the best way to respond to that. "Well—I like my women you know? They're soft in all the right places if you get my drift."

"Yes Gojyo," amusement was clear in Hakkai's voice and it made Gojyo relax, "I think I do."

"Yeah..." Gojyo stuck his foot out, scraping the edge of a step with his heel. "But they were hot."

Hakkai paused in the sip he was about to take from the bottle. "Sorry?"

"The dreams," Gojyo coughed and felt a need to renew his fascination with the sky that was a lot darker now, "they were pretty hot." He made an absent gesture with his hand at his own stomach. "The scar... I'm not sure why it was there erm—you know before—then... in whatever place we were but er—it was kind of... really hot."

"Yes, I got the impression that you got a certain satisfaction in touching it." Hakkai agreed with that with the tone of someone discussing the weather.

"Nah I remember this one—it felt pretty nice against my—" he realised what he'd been about to say and cut himself off, sealing his lips shut, "yeah."

"Yes." There was definitely a chuckle with that one.

"So..."

"So."

"Do you think... you'll be sticking around these parts... maybe?"

"It is a nice town." Hakkai murmured.

"Yeah, and you already have the younger women running around after you."

Hakkai laughed. "Yes, I would have to stay to wait for them to reach a respectable age wouldn't I?"

"So do that."

The serious tone was unexpected by them both. "Gojyo?"

"I thought you weren't looking for anything in particular?"

"I guess I'm not."

"So you can stick around for a while then."

A chuckle.

Gojyo reached for the other beer he'd brought out with him.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt."


End file.
